Cod Almighty | Diary

4:45pm and I think I've made the wrong decision

17 February 2020

Possession 56%; Shots 7; Shots on target 2

Possession 67%; Shots 21; Shots on target 7

Do you notice the difference? Well that's a daft question, of course you do. The top line is Town against Leyton Orient on 19th October last year when we lost 0-4. The next line was us on Saturday, battling it out against the Shrimps and Storm Dennis.

Morecambe were better than expected given their league position. If it wasn't for Bury going belly up, they would be looking very nervously over their shoulders. As it is, they should live to fight another season. Can't believe this dire performance was only four months ago. No wonder we weren't scoring. Hardly any shots and only a couple on target and they were probably telegraphed.

It's clear we're benefiting from the new signings and their quality is the big advantage of having a high profile manager. Hard to pick any above the rest but Grandin is a class apart. You can see he's capable of playing at a higher level but it's great to have him on board for a while. His passing is sublime and sets a benchmark for the rest of the team. Likewise, with Benson. Talented on the ball and it was good to see him get a goal. Clarke is equally skilful, keeps moving and so the opposition can't settle and tame us. Add to that the confidence of Vernam and the rest and there really are some positives.

If Town weren't creating this level of excitement, I think I might have been more likely to heed the travel warning of how bad Dennis might get. Glad I didn't miss that performance. As ever there were still so many fans who started leaving anything up to ten minutes before the final whistle. Or started sidling towards the exits but hovering around obstructing the view of the fans who stay to the (on this occasion not) bitter end.

Stay and clap your team. They are worth it and they play to the final whistle. Why don't you? Are Cleethorpes and Grimsby such a metropolis that you are going to be stuck in traffic for hours? If you're catching a bus, is the crowd so huge that you have to wait for too long? I remember catching the bus to my grandma's after the match in the late 70s when the crowds were many times what they are now and yes, I had to wait but I never left a match early.

Unbeaten in five and eleven points out of the last fifteen. Some fans are starting to get excited and look towards the playoffs. I'm thinking that's just out of reach, or at least relies too much on those around us slipping up and they're not all going to do that. Maybe that's just so many years of watching Town that everything we hope for comes with a feeling of doom. Let's win our games in hand and see where we are then. Billy Clarke tweeted on Saturday that it's enjoyable being involved. Let me tell you Billy, it's just as enjoyable being a Town fan at the moment. Up the Mariners. Fenty Out.